Mechanized car washes can snag a license plate attached to a vehicle or the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) license plate bracket, bending the license plate or causing damage to the license plate bracket and/or the vehicle, or both. It is known that an OEM license plate bracket may be removed from a vehicle prior to washing the vehicle using the mechanized car wash. Removal and reattachment of known OEM license plate bracket may require a specific tool or may be time intensive, or both.
Aftermarket equipment to replace the OEM license plate bracket is known. Aftermarket equipment may be marketed as more resistant to damage associated with mechanized car washes. However, aftermarket equipment may be installed differently on the vehicle than the OEM license plate bracket, which can create compatibility issues with other vehicle equipment, such as parking sensors. For example, if the aftermarket equipment extends too far from the vehicle, the parking sensor could be erroneously triggered; however, this is only one example of possible compatibility issues (other compatibility issues may involve interference with cruise control or other sensors, radiator operation, etc.). In addition, as the configuration/condition of the mechanized car washes can vary from one location or another, it is still possible to have damage when using a mechanized car wash with the aftermarket equipment installed, and removal/reattachment of some known aftermarket license plate equipment may require the same specific tool or may still be time intensive, or both.